Hundreds of thousands of people gathered in Los Angeles on Saturday, Jan. 20, marking the one-year anniversary of the Women’s March that saw millions of people across the nation fired up in protest after President Donald Trump’s inauguration.

Hundreds of marches are planned Saturday and Sunday around the country and in other parts of the world.

On Saturday, demonstrators met at Pershing Square, at 532 S. Olive St., in downtown Los Angeles at 10 a.m. for a march to Grand Park. Authorities said many downtown streets are expected to be closed most of the day.

At one point, KTLA-5, which has a helicopter over downtown, estimated the crowd size at about 400,000.

This year’s march plays out against a backdrop of the #metoo and #timesup movements, and as a surge of women run for public office, from school boards to the U.S. Senate.

Organizers said the march represents a wide range of issues, including immigrant, worker and disability rights, and the environment, according to the Women’s March website.

The demonstrations got underway hours after the federal government shut down, with President Trump and Congress unable to cut a deal.

In downtown L.A., James Raking, a 40-year-old resident of Hancock Park, held a sign that read “I’m every woman.” He said he marched to oppose the president’s “sexism.”

Said Raking, “I think anyone would be a better president than Donald Trump.”

Kathryn Aguilar of Santa Monica said she hoped her daughter won’t ever go through “the same type of harassment I had to.”

Guadeloupe Garcia,17, from Long Beach, walked through the streets of downtown, holding a sign that read, “I’m Mexican. I’m female. I’m the future.”

“I want to tell everyone that girls have the same power as boys,” she said.

Near Grand Park, a group of several counter-protesters chanted, “If you don’t like our president, go to Mexico” and “build that wall.” They waved U.S. flags and signs reading, “Trump and Pence.”

Olga Grigoryants is a multimedia reporter focusing on urban development, business and culture. She also supports the paper in its watchdog role to hold San Fernando Valley power players accountable and loves digging for public records. After studying writing in Moscow, she moved to Los Angeles in 2007 and has called it home ever since. She earned her master’s degree from the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, and has published articles with Reuters, Bloomberg, the Los Angeles Business Journal and LA Weekly. Along the way, she picked up awards from the Los Angeles Press Club and Society of Professional Journalists. If you want to get on her bright side, she loves a perfect cup of matcha latte.

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